Paradise Lost
by Minmei
Summary: [SGV1] Sequel to "Sin." A resolute Sierra relives the final days of the Blue Moon Village.


Everyday begins as it usually should. Morning comes and, though it is seldom that I am up with it, I attempt to greet the day as productively as I possibly can. However, there is little productivity these days, and it isn't something I can honestly help. 

Three hundred and eighty years have passed since then...no, three hundred and eighty-two. Well, it's been nearly four hundred years. I know, because I've been counting the minutes since then. 

...Actually...no, even I wouldn't be that bored. 

I couldn't make time to be that bored anyway; something occupies my mind everyday, and has for the past four hundred years. An incident that cost me what I had once deemed to be my "curse" as well as the lives of my closest companions. 

In the years I spent alone in that forest, I never expected a community such as ours to come into being. Rean, a knight I had taken pity upon, became the first of my brethren. This would also serve as the first step toward me feeling alive for the first time in ages. 

It was wonderful. I wouldn't say he was my "whole life" but I honestly couldn't have imagined my life without him. It was like an angel had been sent to me, and in time, several others would be as well. 

My friends...one by one, they came to me. Like him, none of them had any idea what awaited them here. They simply wanted to escape this world...and I gave them new life. I didn't expect anything in return, but they all remained by my side. I was, and will always be, eternally grateful for everything they've done in the time we were undoubtedly blessed with. 

Welcoming everyone into this forest eased the pain of both my sins and solitude, little by little. Filled with new confidence and trust, I removed the Moon Rune from my body and set it on an altar in the middle of our village...a brilliant symbol of the eventual strong ties between us all. With Rean by my side, I looked forward to our village prospering and the new ones, meek and weary, finding solace and strength where they were previously unable find such things with any success. 

They were all so happy in the village; it gave me such a sense of pride. It became apparent to me that the rune I possessed was more than just some "curse." I was willing to do all that I could to sustain everyone's joy. 

For hundreds of years, we went on, laughing, talking, dancing, and, of course, welcoming new additions with open arms. No matter what we did, we were always enjoying it. Our laid-back attitudes resulted in very few conflicts and many nights getting to know one another and bonding. I could not have asked for a more wonderful time. 

But those days could not last forever. I learned that shortly after I made what would be the final addition to our group. A young man with an initially likeable charm--we accepted him as any other, and I grew quite fond of him. And like any other in my group, I trusted him. 

But this time, it was a mistake. 

On the outside, he was intelligent and charming. On the inside, he burned with a hunger for power, and satisfied it the night he ran off with the Moon Rune. While we were celebrating, he stole it from the altar it shone from, surprising all of us who had placed our trust in him. 

Everyone knew what the absence of the Moon Rune meant. I explained it to everyone shortly after they were initiated into the village. The presence of the rune, as well as my mastery over it, allowed the vampires to live without the need for consumption of mortal blood. Once it was removed, it would mean the end of their lives...unless they chose to hunt the living. I was sad, but somehow comforted by the fact that many chose to accept their fates rather than feast on innocent blood. 

However, there were those who could not cope with this unexpected turn of events. In some, the bloodlust exploded, while others were simply frightened of dying. In either case, they fled from the village with the intent of killing. I couldn't think of pursuing them at that moment; so many around me were dying and I couldn't abandon them. 

The loss of the Blue Moon Rune meant the end of this village, this community, something that had been an important part of my life for several centuries. While I would live on, I would lose all my friends, as well as the man I spent each night with. 

During that time, I often looked at him when he wasn't looking at me, wondering which moments were our last. Actually, he was constantly avoiding my gaze, so I studied him often. Beneath his expression, I could tell how upset he was. And who could blame him? Unfortunately, he was growing cold and distant while I was wishing for us to make the most of his final days. 

The deaths began almost immediately. And death did not discriminate; people of all ages were being taken. Although I suppose it's strange to assign these people to a specific age based upon their appearance. After all, some of them had existed for a couple of centuries. 

Rean tried to keep his emotions intact as he witnessed everyone around him perish. But on the third day, he could no longer hold it together. 

It was after we had buried two men. I had approached him, looking for some comfort as I usually did. I can still remember our conversation. 

"I can't believe they're gone..." I whispered, a hollow cliché by that point. 

"Yes..." he replied halfheartedly. 

"But at least...they were with loved ones when they died. I...I know we haven't had time to talk about this, but we need to. Time is running out. Rean, please don't distance yourself from me, especially now. You could be gone by tomorrow, literally...I want to spend every moment with you." 

"I don't plan on dying." 

"What do you mean?" 

"For the past three days, I've been watching friends die, and I don't want to end up like that. You're right about one thing; time is running out. That's...that's why I must go..." 

"What are you saying, Rean?" I demanded, shocked by these words. He was the last person I had expected to take that selfish path. "You're just going to run away? Everyone is _dying_. I _need_ you right now. I can't believe you would just abandon us to--" 

_"I'm **sorry**, Sierra...!"_ he snarled suddenly, an uncharacteristic display for his usually composed nature. "S-seeing those men...just as strong as I was...I-I can't stay here. I can't die. I'm afraid. I would...rather..." 

"You would rather kill mortals to sustain your life. Is that it?" 

Rean groaned out of frustration. "You wouldn't understand." 

"_I_ wouldn't understand?!" I shot back. "How _dare_ you?! I was the original bearer of that rune, and I couldn't _stand_ knowing how many lives I took! The curse that prolonged my unnatural life...you don't know how many times I wish I had died in their place! To me, death would have been the true blessing..." 

He gazed once into my eyes, which were filling with tears, and then turned away. "...I'm sorry. Goodbye, Sierra." 

"Rean...!" I started to run after him, but was stopped by a loud shriek. I turned around, knowing which house the sound was coming from. 

I hurried inside, where the little one I knew as Justin lay on the bed. His body was twisted in a strange position, his breathing labored. One might look at him and think he was just some child having an episode or something. But I knew the truth. He wasn't just some child. And...he was dying. 

He'd been slowly dying for the past few days, but he chose to remain strong emotionally. He couldn't bring himself to take the blood of any mortal. The occasional screams erupting from him were due to him fighting his desire to draw blood. He refused to let it overcome him...and eventual death was to be his reward. 

His mother already died, maybe a century and a half prior to that time. He was an orphan, maybe seven or eight years old, taken in by nobility. But the other children picked on him and treated him horribly. The family that had taken him in essentially made him a slave, and he had no place where he felt he truly belonged. 

He ran away after a few months, praying only for some peace. He'd been running for days, having barely eaten during that time. He was thoroughly exhausted when he finally stumbled upon our community, but he looked at us as though he'd been waiting his whole life to find us. I remember, he kept saying he just wanted a place to belong to, and asked me if I knew of a place. 

He was so weak, so fragile-looking. I granted him immortality and he repaid me by becoming a regular contributor to the community. He was very artistic, and he liked to tell jokes. He liked...being liked...for anything he did. I suppose when you're in an environment where you're deprived of acceptance, you really yearn and strive for that. And everyone had every reason to like him. He was a good person, very honest and sincere. 

In fact, many people here were good and honest and sincere. Like Justin, I could tell you many stories about the people here. Claudette lost her husband in a war, and disease sweeping her village had left her and many women barren. She didn't want to live the rest of her life alone, so she came out here in order to end it. But to her, what she found was a greater blessing than the early death she sought. Steven had a failed business; it was something that had been established since his great-great-grandfather's time. The debt collectors left him with nothing, and he was so hard on himself for not having saved the business that he became suicidal. But from the way he spoke about it, it sounded like it was just the times. Still, I wanted him to have a second chance to show him that he wasn't a failure. I put him in charge of many of the celebrations we held in our village, and he was always successful. 

Mayumi and Roberto were nothing short of mysteries, which is probably what drew them to one another here. They knew they could never have children, but they often joked about having quadruplets since twins had evidently been prevalent on either side. 

Mayumi died first; Roberto held her hand and assured her that she would not have to be lonely for long, because he would be joining her soon. That's exactly what he did the following day. I don't know what happened to Claudette, but she probably ran away with the ones seeking to sustain their lives. Steven passed away two days ago along with Mayumi. 

And now, it was Justin's turn. 

"M...Mistress Sierra...?" came the small voice. The little one had finally calmed down. 

"It's all right," I told him, holding him in my arms. "I'll stay with you for as long as you need." 

"Sierra..." he said. "I really...enjoyed living with all of you. For the first time...I felt like I really belonged. I would go through all my terrible experiences again, just for a glimpse of this place." 

"Thank you..." I replied sincerely. "I enjoyed having you here, too. I wouldn't trade anything in the world for that." I crossed my hand under his chin and cupped his cheek. I gently moved him closer, touching his head to my chin. 

Justin's voice grew softer. "Sierra...? I'm sorry...to leave you...all alone..." 

I felt great sorrow as his body became lifeless in my arms. I thought I could cope better whenever another person died, but the pain in my heart always remained the same. 

The stronger ones always helped to bury the dead. I wanted to thank them, but it was difficult. They, too, were burying their friends...and every time I looked at them, I wondered just how soon their time would come. 

After two weeks of living in uncertainty, the village of the Blue Moon was no more. It was almost incredible, how quickly it fell apart. All of it, coming to an end. 

No more festivals by the altar, no more celebrations. No more speaking with friends late at night, no more waking up to Rean's gentle touch in the morning. No more laughter from the children playing in the woods, no more gifts from the ladies who liked to make urns and bejeweled accessories. It was all gone. 

With the tears rolling down my cheeks, I knelt down and wrapped my arms around myself, forcing myself to face another truth. 

I was all alone, once again. 

I buried the last two of my brethren and then held a silent ceremony to honor all their lives. I also silently prayed for the strength to go after all those who chose to escape death. It is not that I wished to end their lives; it was my duty. I had been responsible for turning them into the undead creatures they were, and though I did not take away their feelings of compassion, I could not stand by while they took away lives in order to keep theirs. 

That...included Rean. 

It wasn't easy knowing I had to destroy the man I could truly consider the great love of my life. But with the assistance of a young swordsman, I was able to confront him a few months ago. He had been killing innocent travelers in the very place he lived. There were some complications in our confrontation, but I managed to put him to rest. Though hundreds of years had lessened the pain of our separation, it wasn't easy hearing him say his only wish was to return with me to our village. Still, I had to go on in my hunt for the other vampires. I'd been doing it for hundreds of years, so there was no sense in stopping at that point. 

There was also the matter of my stolen Moon Rune. The one in possession of it was many times as dangerous as an ordinary vampire. Consumed with a lust for power, he wouldn't care whether he took lives or not if he was initially under the rune's influence. As he mastered the rune, he would get exactly what he wanted...all the power at his disposal. 

He was Neclord--the one who heartlessly destroyed in a matter of weeks what I had been building for several centuries. 

While I was grieving, I thought about him and his betrayal. It filled me with such a paralyzing hatred that I never knew how I managed to start the day. Everyday, I thought about destroying him, for taking away everything that ever mattered to me. I thought about what a trusting fool I was to have let him into our community. But I suppose I had sympathy toward anyone who ever suffered from loneliness, whether it was their own fault or not. And besides, he was an extremely likeable fellow--anyone would have done the same and accepted him. 

I think the only thing that helped me to go on was knowing I couldn't let him hurt anyone else. Unfortunately, in four hundred years, I know he has hurt a lot of people. And perhaps I'll have to ask the forgiveness of some merciful deity for not preventing that, but I also know this situation is a lot more complex than a single stolen item. And at least I am doing something about it. And I won't give up until that rune is once again in my possession. 

The Moon Rune--what was once my curse is now my focus. I know it will be safest with me now, because I do not hunger for power or blood. Beyond reuniting with it, I don't know what awaits me down my path...but I won't worry about that now. 

I wasted many years consumed with anger for him, which is an odd complaint for one given eternal life. But I don't care about the length of my life; I just want to find worth in it. Anger may help one to grow and express oneself, but too much time spent in it and life quickly becomes wasted. In order to move myself past anger, I thought of all the lessons to be learned from my situation. It is not that I fear to trust again, though it can be hard to open up at times. It is just that my eyes have been opened to many things, shady folk such as him included. 

But after eight hundred years in existence, one comes to understand and forgive a lot of things, too. I did lose a lot because of him, but I also learned a lot as well. And even though he was the cause of my community's destruction, he can never take away the time I did have with all those people. I cherish that time, I will always cherish that time, and I will take comfort knowing he cannot erase those years. 

I don't know if I'll ever be so lucky again, but I'll certainly find some peace when I take back my rune. Too many lives have been lost; I know that his terror will end with the removal of the rune. But I'll make sure he won't live on either. Not because I despise him or seek revenge, but because like the others, I want to stop him from taking lives for his own gain. For the current bearer of the Moon Rune, it is long past due. 

Like the others, he has been elusive. 

But I will find him. 

I swear it on all the lives of my brethren.

* * *

  
_Author's Note: Oh, gosh. This was actually previously unplanned, so thanks to Black Wings for the suggestion. And a great big thanks to SARS and Suikosource for providing so much information to go by. _

_Any original characters are obviously, well, property of me. Thanks to everyone for reading._


End file.
